PrayerWare
Just last week I happened upon a page which was advertising a software product for Christians. Now, I would have thought that somebody was pulling my leg, and that this so-called product was just a gag that did not really exist, if I was not already familiar with so many other silly things that today's Evangelicals do.
The product was a computer program to help Christians pray. I suppose that you could call it PrayerWare. "Software designed to help your church pray more effectively," is what the ad said. I thought it was one of the most ridiculous products that I had ever seen. I mean, if a group of Christians needs the help of a computer to pray effectively, then I think they have a big problem. And I have to ask myself: What will happen to these people when the computer system goes down?
And it is not just the concept itself that makes it seem like a joke, it is also the way that it is advertised. The ad looks just like one you might see for small business accounting software. It has the semi-anonymous testimonials, the hyped statements about its benefits ("MOBILIZES YOUR PRAYER RESOURCES!"), and bulleted lists touting helpful features. Maybe these people mean well but it just seems like crass commercialism in the name of promoting godliness, and I cannot think of anything more lifeless and sterile than the idea of making the prayers of a church a data processing function.
Unleash Prayer Power! In Your Church
Enables you to list all members in a database that is integrated into the rest of the program. Makes it easy to mobilize them for prayer. Already have a list? Easily import it!
Does anybody want their supplications to God organized into a database? Doesn't that seem to take just a bit of the spontaneity out of it? Can you picture Paul on his missionary journeys flicking open his laptop every time he needed to "mobilize" the church to pray?
Offers you a central location to input ALL church prayer requests. Never forget a request again!
Are there people who really want to "input" their prayers into a computer at a "central location"? Why would they not just "input" prayers to God when they are moved to do so, and leave it at that?
Prayer Power! prints 16 different reports.
Sixteen different reports? Who would even need one? What is the church to these people? Is it like a government bureaucracy or a Wall Street brokerage firm? I wonder if these "prayer reports" have pie charts and graphs so that you can better analyze your prayers. Maybe that will be in version 2.0.
Any Extra Features? YES!
No! I think I've had enough.
The product was a computer program to help Christians pray. I suppose that you could call it PrayerWare. "Software designed to help your church pray more effectively," is what the ad said. I thought it was one of the most ridiculous products that I had ever seen. I mean, if a group of Christians needs the help of a computer to pray effectively, then I think they have a big problem. And I have to ask myself: What will happen to these people when the computer system goes down?
And it is not just the concept itself that makes it seem like a joke, it is also the way that it is advertised. The ad looks just like one you might see for small business accounting software. It has the semi-anonymous testimonials, the hyped statements about its benefits ("MOBILIZES YOUR PRAYER RESOURCES!"), and bulleted lists touting helpful features. Maybe these people mean well but it just seems like crass commercialism in the name of promoting godliness, and I cannot think of anything more lifeless and sterile than the idea of making the prayers of a church a data processing function.
Unleash Prayer Power! In Your Church
Enables you to list all members in a database that is integrated into the rest of the program. Makes it easy to mobilize them for prayer. Already have a list? Easily import it!
Does anybody want their supplications to God organized into a database? Doesn't that seem to take just a bit of the spontaneity out of it? Can you picture Paul on his missionary journeys flicking open his laptop every time he needed to "mobilize" the church to pray?
Offers you a central location to input ALL church prayer requests. Never forget a request again!
Are there people who really want to "input" their prayers into a computer at a "central location"? Why would they not just "input" prayers to God when they are moved to do so, and leave it at that?
Prayer Power! prints 16 different reports.
Sixteen different reports? Who would even need one? What is the church to these people? Is it like a government bureaucracy or a Wall Street brokerage firm? I wonder if these "prayer reports" have pie charts and graphs so that you can better analyze your prayers. Maybe that will be in version 2.0.
Any Extra Features? YES!
No! I think I've had enough.
posted by Stuart DiNenno at 12/22/2004 09:06:00 PM
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